Whiteout
by mabelreid
Summary: A snowstorm, an unpredictable suspect and Emily and Reid.  What could possibly go wrong with that combination?  Quite alot actually.  Reid and Emily are sent out to interview a possible suspect in a bombing. Reid and Emily friendship fic and case fic
1. The Coming of the Storm

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n this is a story for the winter and Christmas season. It will be mostly from Emily and Reid's POV with a case incorporated, but mostly focused on their friendship. Many thanks to my always awesome beta REIDFANATIC for all her ideas and support. _**

**_The Coming of the Storm_**

The rhythmic swish and tap of the windshield wipers had nearly succeeded in hypnotizing her. Their movement supplied the only relief from the white snow covering the road, the trees that lined the road and every living thing that hadn't taken shelter from the storm.

She glanced over at Reid. He hadn't spoken for nearly half an hour. His eyes watched the intermittent swathes of black top with a concentration that rivaled a bomb technician disarming a small nuclear device. Her eyes flicked down to his hands. They gripped the steering wheel so tightly that his knuckles were white. If she spoke, he might jump right through the ceiling of the truck.

A spot of green pulled her eyes back to the side of the road. They were coming up on a new mile marker. Reid must've seen it too because he broke his long silence.

"One more mile…" He said softly almost as if she weren't there.

She didn't answer his comment. Instead, she turned her eyes to the file folder on the seat between them. They were making their way to the home of one Walter Hogg who lived twenty miles north of Cedar City Utah. Mr. Hogg lived alone, and worked as a part time maintenance man for an apartment complex in the city. He had a rap sheet a mile long including assault and battery, armed robbery and assault as a hate crime. He'd never served time in Utah, but had been a guest of the state of Wyoming earlier that year for the hate crime. _Why had they let him out six months ahead of his sentence just because he'd been a model prisoner?_

Emily shook her head in disgust._ Why did apartment complexes hire men like Hogg? Didn't they do background checks? Didn't they care?_

She glanced impatiently at her watch. They still had to interview Hogg as a possible suspect in three bombings. She rubbed at the back of her sore and tight neck. The team had three possible suspects all spread out over a forty-mile radius in the area of Cedar City. They'd split up to save time. It had seemed like a good idea at first, but then twelve miles out of the city, the snow had begun piling on top of the foot or two already on the ground.

Her eyes flickered back to the road, as Reid turned right onto a dirt road that hadn't seen a snow plow for a while. Fortunately, the four-wheel drive Ford Explorer handled the snow well. Reid handled the truck with a finesse that confused her as well as made her smile. The way Morgan told it, Reid could barely start a vehicle, much less drive one. She didn't understand Morgan's attitude. After all, Reid had passed the same training as the rest of the team to qualify as a field agent.

They rounded a corner about half a mile from the main road and there stood a dilapidated two-story house. She couldn't tell the original color of the house, because the paint had faded to an ugly gray. A faded and rusted green pickup truck stood parked alongside it with it's nose pointing to them. Reid pulled up along side and shut off the engine.

He glanced over at her. "You were right about the truck. Do you think we found the right guy?" He asked her.

"I don't know… Be careful," she ordered. "Don't even think about separating from me or surrendering your weapon to me for any reason."

He rolled his eyes. "Am I never going to live any of that down?"

Emily opened the door. "No… Come on, it's cold out here and it'll be dark before we get back if we don't hurry."

They tramped through the snow piled halfway up their calves. Emily thanked God she'd worn her boots and her parka. They hurried up the walkway no one had cleared for a few days and up the front porch steps. The porch extended the length of the front of the house. An old porch swing hung to her left, squeaking on chains that probably hadn't seen oil in years. The paint had faded the same grey as the rest of the house.

"Looks like Norman Bates' cousin lives here." She quipped through chattering teeth as the wind picked up from the north pushing snowflakes against the side of her face until the porch roof blocked it.

"Who's Norman Bates?" Reid asked.

"You're kidding right?" She said, as she opened the screen door and knocked on the 'faded to grey' wooden door.

He stared blankly at her, his sculpted face peering through the huge fur lined hood of his parka. "No…" He said slowly and irritably. "I'm not kidding."

"He's a -" She stopped when the door opened and a man she assumed to be Walter Hogg addressed her.

"What the f- do you want?"

"FBI…" Emily pulled out her badge. "Are you Mr. Walter Hogg?"

"What if I am?" He said, his small eyes narrowing at her.

He wore plaid shirt tucked into a pair of overalls and rubber boots. His baldhead had wisps of hair as grey as the house standing on end as though he had been electrocuted or badly frightened. He was very tall and muscular, even larger than Morgan.

"We like to ask you a few questions? May we come in?"

"No, you may not come in. I know my rights. I don't have to let you pig feds into my house." He effectively blocked Emily from seeing into his house with his bulk.

"Mr. Hogg… Can you tell us where you were on the evenings of December 1st, December 17th and December 19th?"

"I was here."

Reid glanced over at Emily. She didn't look at him. "Was anyone here with you that can verify that?"

"No… I was alone."

So fast that Emily didn't see it coming, Hogg pulled a gun from his pocket and pointed it right at Reid. "You should've left when you had the chance."

"Sir… Put the gun down." Emily ordered reaching for her sidearm.

"Don't. Move." Hogg ordered through clenched teeth.

"Mr. Hogg… Let's just take a breath…"

The huge man turned on Reid. "Shut up little man or I'll break you in half with one hand."

"Walter…" Emily began. "You're going to face assault on a federal officer. It's up to you if you want to cooperate -"

"I told you to shut up." Hogg roared. "This is private property. I know my rights."

"Mr. Hogg-"

The big man squeezed the trigger. The roar of the gun and the smell of gunpowder overcame the storm as everything began to move in slow motion. Emily felt, rather than saw, Reid lifted off his feet from the force of the blast. She reached for her gun, but the big man was faster. He shoved her hard enough to knock her back and down the stairs to the porch. She fell… her head cracked the walkway hard. She lay dazed on the snow and ice as more white flakes fell faster than she'd ever seen. Her head ached and spun as she tried to stand up.

Hogg grabbed her, yanking her up into his arms with one hand. The other hand clenched around her throat. He squeezed, the pain was enormous, racing through her blood like fire as the lack of oxygen made the grey spots dance in front of her eyes. She beat her arms at his hands, but he held on like a terrier with a bone.

Everything went black and he dropped her again. The release of his hand from her throat was like a blessing from heaven. She sucked air in great gasps and tried to turn over. He kicked her ribs. Her parka blunted most of the blow, but she hissed out a breathless scream.

He pulled her gun from her pocket and tossed into the trees. "Teach you little bitch what happens to uppity women."

She gasped and choked, unable to fight him off as he hooked an arm around her left her leg and began to drag her around the house.

"NO!"

She turned her head toward the anguished voice, but the snow stinging in her eyes and face made it impossible to seeing anything but wavering shadows of black and white like an old film. Hogg dropped her leg and turned back.

"Well… I thought I killed you little man. What are you going to do now?" His taunting voice shattered her nerves of glass.

"Leave her alone or I... will... take you down!"

The edge of hard command in Reid's voice startled her. She'd never heard it before, and it jacked up her heart rate so that she began to try and turn over to stand up. She had to do _something_.

"I don't think you have it in you." Hogg shouted back.

She peered up through the wavering snow. Hogg had his gun on Reid, not her, so she kicked out hard with her leg at the same time two shots rang out.


	2. Blood and Snow

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n thank you all for your kind reviews and feedback. I hope you enjoy this chapter as well. Also, many thanks to my beta REIDFANATIC for her medical knowledge. _**

**_Blood and Snow _**

_As the explosions from the two guns echoed through the trees, Hogg tumbled off his feet and hit the snow just inches from her legs. Snow puffed up around him from the impact. Emily rolled to her left side, trying to avoid the ribs Hogg had kicked. Her breathing came in wheezing gaps. She choked on inhaled snow that was coming down so thick she could hardly see the porch to the house._

Hogg hadn't moved from where he fell after the gunshots. She wrenched herself to her hands and knees, in the rapidly accumulating snow. She sat on her knees trying to get her breath, knowing that she should find out if Hogg was truly incapacitated. She took in a deep breath and began to crawl to him. Her hair fell forward from her hood, but she didn't stop to push it back. Snow collected on her cheeks and her eyelids as she reached out to touch the big man.

She cursed her trembling fingers as they prodded Hogg. He wasn't breathing she could see. She reached over his torso and picked up his gun. She shoved it in her coat pocket and swayed to her feet. It hurt to breathe, but she could walk.

The staggering walk back up to the house seemed to take forever as the white snow fell faster and faster. A freezing cold wind picked up and began pushing the snowflakes around like little tornado funnels. Curtains in the flakes opened and closed periodically as she tried to hurry up the steps.

"Reid…" She breathed out hoarsely.

"Emily?"

She looked left toward the old porch swing. Reid stood there holding onto one of the chains, swaying on his feet as though he was drunk. His white face matched the snow that fell with implacable purpose, filling in her footsteps behind her. Scarlet blood dripped onto the dirty wooden swing from his left shoulder.

"Reid, oh my God I thought he killed you." She hurried as fast as her aching side would let her move.

Reid's legs buckled as she approached. She reached out and grabbed his uninjured arm as he staggered forward.

"Are you okay?" He gasped.

She nearly fell under the burden of his weight despite his thin frame. "I'm fine… You shot him." She pulled him along to the front door.

The icy wind howled in under the porch roof, pushing snow into the space and across her face. Her side ached and burned as she limped with Reid's weight swaying in her arms.

"I couldn't…" Reid gasped. "I c-couldn't l-let him k-kill you." His teeth chattered around the words.

She opened the screen door and dragged Reid into the little living room kicking the door shut behind them. The abrupt change in temperature made her cheeks and nose tingle as though they'd gone to sleep. She looked around the room that seemed to be neater and cleaner than a hospital operating room. A large, ugly green and yellow plaid couch sat facing a huge brick fireplace in which burned a crackling fire.

"Reid?"

She looked over to see his eyes were going glassy. He shivered violently as red spots of blood dropped on the hard wood floor. She helped him limp to the couch. He fell down on it with a groaning cry. Emily pulled off his boots and lifted his feet up on the arm of the couch.

"Stay here," She said unnecessarily. "I'll be right back."

She hurried from living room through to a hallway looking right and left. She yanked Hogg's gun from her pocket and held it in front of her with shaking hands and arms. Her training told her never to assume that the home of a suspect was empty when entered. She edged quickly to the first door on her left. It was a closet full of ruthless organized files. She ignored it and went to the next door, which was a bedroom with a twin bed and one dresser as it's only furniture.

She finally found the bathroom at the end of the hall. Her breath hitched in and out in painful waves as she searched for something to help Reid. The bathroom was as organized as the closet so it didn't take long to find a first aid kit under the sink. The cabinet also held a pile of clean towels. She grabbed as many as she could carry.

The bedroom was her next priority. She pulled the only pillow off the bed along with the blanket and carried it all back into the living room.

"Reid?"

His breath wheezed in and out through clenched teeth. The skin on his face, white as bone with red spots on the cheeks, pulled tight against the grimace of pain. He shuddered hard despite the heat of the fire.

"I think you're going into shock Reid. Stay with me." She unbuttoned his parka and lifted his upper body to remove it.

Reid screamed in pain, his white face going a bit green as she moved him. His hands gripped her arms hard, but she didn't feel it, just as she no longer seemed to feel the pain in her head or in her ribs.

"I'm sorry… I need to get you out of these clothes and look at your wounds. Talk to me about shock. What do you do for the patient Reid?" She asked as calmly as she could while her heart slammed against her chest.

"L-loss of b-blood causes s-shock…" He stuttered as she looked at the hole in his shoulder.

It bled profusely, but she couldn't tell if the bullet had hit any bones. She could tell the bullet had exited through the other side. The ragged holes and the scarlet blood set her stomach roiling. She didn't vomit only through sheer force of will.

"Y-you h-have t-to apply p-pressure. It's g-going to h-hurt b-but you have to stop the b-bleeding."

She nodded. "Okay, here goes."

She placed a towel over the wound and pressed down as hard as she could. Reid screamed in agony. She let go reflexively.

"No…" He breathed, tears leaking from his eyes. "D-don't l-let go till t-the bleeding s-stops."

She pushed down again and he groaned. "I'm sorry."

He nodded. "N-need…" He started to say around bluish lips, "c-cold."

She reached back with one hand pulled the blanket from her stack of supplies. Yanking it up over his body took some doing as she tried to keep her other hand hard on his wound. More tears fells down his cheeks as he moaned in pain.

"What else Reid?" She asked her voice breaking over her words.

Pain brightened his eyes as he looked up at her. "T-tachycardia…" He managed to say.

"What?"

"F-fast h-heart beat, f-from l-lack of r-red b-blood cells."

"Don't…" She soothed. "I'm going to check the bleeding.

He shook his head. "No…"

"What is it?"

"Ten m-minutes," He hissed through his gritted teeth. "Wait t-ten m-minutes, then c-check it." He said in a breathless rush. "If it's still b-bleeding, then apply p-pressure for another t-ten m-minutes.

She lifted the blood soaked towel after a few more minutes. "I think it's slowing." She replaced the towel with a clean one and resumed the pressure. He groaned, more tears leaking over his cheeks. "Don't talk." She ordered when he opened his mouth. "Save your strength."

He ignored her and whispered. "I-is he d-dead?"

"Yes…" She put her fingertips to his neck. "Don't think about it now.

His pulse felt fast to her, but then she wasn't a doctor so she really couldn't tell if it was normal or a result of the stress and pain he dealt with now.

"Emily…"

"I said don't talk." She softly chided him. "It stopped bleeding." She said after another ten minutes passed at a snail's crawl.

His smile was a grimace. "C-cold…" He said as his teeth began to chatter.

"I know. I'll get your wounds cleaned up and bandaged. Stay here for a minute." She said pulling the blanket up as close as she could to his shoulders.

"N-not g-going a-anywhere," he agreed.

"I said, stop talking." She admonished.

Another foray into the bathroom netted some hydrogen peroxide and some rags. She nearly knocked the bottle of the peroxide off the shelf with her trembling hands. She stopped for a minute and stared at her face in the oval shaped mirror over the white porcelain sink. "Get a grip. Don't let him see how freaked out you are right now."

_What had happened to her famous compartmentalization skills? She hadn't freaked out like this before with Henkel or Reid's first shooting or even Hotch's stabbing. _

She pushed her hair out of her face and shrugged off her coat. "Get in there and help him." She told her reflection sternly. She breathed in and out slowly then hurried back to the living room.

"I found some hydrogen peroxide." She said.

He nodded… "H-hospitals use s-saline, but h-hydrogen p-peroxide is good too. Y-you n-need to c-clean and b-bandage b-both s-sides of the w-wound."

"I thought I told you not to talk." She scolded as she opened the bottle of peroxide.

"D-did you know that s-seventy percent of all guns-shot v-victims survive?"

"That's good to know," She smiled. "I'm afraid this is going to hurt." She soaked a rag and applied it to his front wound. He hitched in a breath and screamed.

"I'm sorry. I'll be as quick as I can." She promised

Her throat constricted against the tears that wanted to break free of her control. She had to stay strong for Reid.

The longest fifteen minutes of her life passed as she got both the entrance and exit wound bandaged. The good news was that Reid's face wasn't nearly as white as it had been when she'd seen him out on the porch after the shooting.

"There… I'm finished." She patted his good shoulder.

"Thank you."

He'd managed to sit up while she'd bandaged his back. She took one look at his bloodstained coat and pulled it from under him.

"The sofa's stained. Do you think you can walk? There's a bed in the bedroom that looks comfortable."

"Can we leave?" He asked, his eyes pleading with her. "I don't want to stay here anymore."

"No… It's a blizzard out there. The road's probably snowed in."

He hung his head. "I'm sorry Emily. It's my fault we're here." He shivered.

"Come on…" She said ignoring his last comment. "Let's get you into the bedroom. We'll talk later, after you've had something for the pain and get some rest."

"I don't want to go anywhere. I'm tired and I feel weak and cold." He pleaded with her.

"Okay," she decided to cover the blood stained fabric with a couple of clean towels. "Can you sit up for a minute? I'll be right back."

He nodded and leaned against his right side breathing heavily. She returned to the room a few minutes later with sheets and a medicine bottle.

"I don't want anything for the pain." He argued as she helped him stand up.

"Don't argue with me." She commanded. "It's just Tylenol. You'll be lucky if it takes the edge off the pain."

"Alright…" He agreed. "It does hurt a lot.

She spread out the sheets over the towels and helped him lay down. "I can help you off with your pants." She offered.

"No… I'm still cold." He shivered at the lack of shirt and sweater vest.

"Okay…" She pulled the blanket up over him and tucked it carefully around his wound.

"I'm sorry Emily." He said again.

"Stop blaming yourself for this Reid. You couldn't have known." She shushed him.

"I'm a trouble magnet Emily."

"How about you take a couple of these pills?" She offered.

She sat on the battered old easy chair, positioned next to the hearth of the fireplace. It faced the sofa so she could see Reid.

He took the pills with a glass of water she'd brought him from the kitchen. "Thank you." He said.

"I'm going to see if there's anything to eat in this place."

"I'm not hungry." Reid said.

"You need something. I'll see if there's a can of soup or something."

She left the living room for the kitchen so that he couldn't argue with her. The small, round table against the far wall had just one chair pulled up to it. She pulled it out, sat down and began to cry as quietly as she could.


	3. Snowed In

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n thank you all for your kind reviews and support. Once again many thanks to REIDFANATIC for her help with all the medical stuff and her unwavering support. _**

**_Snowed In _**

When Emily returned to the living room with a round pizza pan topped with two bowls of steaming chicken noodle soup and bottled water, Reid was trying to get to his feet.

"Hey…" She scolded, leaving the makeshift tray on the end table next to the easy chair. "Just where do you think you're going?"

His doe eyes flicked to look at the hardwood floor. She caught his embarrassment in the light flush that enhanced his cheeks. "I have to go to the bathroom."

"Oh… Well let me help you." She smirked at him, glad that he hadn't noticed her crying jag.

"I don't need help." He insisted indignantly.

"I don't mean that Reid. I'll help you to the bathroom. You don't know where it is." She reminded him choking back a laugh that wouldn't be taken kindly at that moment.

"Oh right," he let her take some of his weight.

She bit down on a groan. The pain in her ribs had backed off to almost nothing while she'd concentrated on helping Reid, but now it was back with a vengeance.

Luckily, Reid didn't seem to notice her pain as she helped him to the bathroom. "I'll just wait for you." She said through gritted teeth.

"You don't have to do that Emily. I'm alright."

"Reid…"

He gently pushed her away with his good arm. "Can you please just leave me alone?" He shut the door hard in her face.

She decided to wait there despite the irritation in his voice. He didn't look like he was at Death's door anymore, but that didn't mean she'd just let him wander all over the house alone.

When he yanked open the door a few minutes later she almost smiled at the scowl on his face. It was just so unlike him to get so irritated so easily.

"I thought I said not to wait. I have to walk on my own now that I have some painkillers in my system and the bleeding stopped. It's good for me." He declared as he winced in pain.

"Oh really," she folded her arms over her chest. "Then why are you grimacing in pain?"

He started back to the living room waving her away. "I'm not grimacing in pain." He argued with a groan.

"Are we really going to argue about this? I'm concerned about you Reid. Thanks to no cell service and the fact that Hogg doesn't seem to have a phone, we're stuck here. So unless you think we should send up smoke signals, we're not going anywhere."

Reid sat carefully on the edge of the old, lumpy couch. "I'm sorry… It's just that I don't understand why I can't try to be strong for you."

She decided to sit on the edge of the low hearth instead of the couch. "It's not your job. You're the one that's been shot."

"You're hurt too." He said softly. "Don't pretend you're not because I can see it in your eyes. I swore I'd never let you hurt for me again, so -"

"Reid, I told you that wasn't your fault." She said with some exasperation. "Let it go."

"I promise I'll never bring it up again if you tell how badly you're hurt this time. And," he held up a hand to silence her when she opened her mouth. "Don't lie to me and say it looks a lot worse than it is."

She kicked herself for missing the calculation in his eyes. Even after three years of working together, he could still surprise her at the oddest times.

"Well played Dr. Reid." She snapped. "Fine… He kicked me in the ribs. My parka blocked some of the blow, but I think I've got a couple bruised ribs."

"Let me see it." Reid ordered.

"I think some of the blood you lost must have affected your brain because I could swear you asked to see my ribs."

Reid pulled his blanket around his shoulders with his good hand. "My brain is just fine. You've seen my bare chest several times in the last two hours. I think I can handle seeing the right side of your torso unclothed."

"How did you know which side?" She asked in surprise.

"I noticed you were hurt when you came up the front steps after I killed Hogg."

Emily pulled her sweater up on her right side so he could see the bruises on her skin. "Satisfied?" She snapped annoyed. "I'm fine."

"Are you having trouble breathing?" He asked.

"No, it just hurts to breathe and move." She answered.

"The ribs probably aren't broken." He declared. "You might have some separation of the cartilage though."

Emily left her seat next to the fire and picked up the pizza tray. "Eat! Before this gets cold," she ordered.

He took one of the bowls of soup with his good hand and tried to pick up the spoon with his injured hand, but cried out in pain instead.

"Let me help you." She took the spoon and dunked it in the bowl.

"You don't have to feed me." He snapped, pulling away from her. "Just move for a second."

She stood up with the tray while he swung his legs up on the couch. "There, put the tray on my legs."

She put the tray on his lap, took one of the bowls, and bottled water for her to eat. "Smells good," she said. "Hogg's got a whole pantry stuffed with canned and freeze dried stuff and I can hear a generator out back. It's like he was planning to hold off some kind of siege." She said as Reid spooned some of the soup into his mouth.

"At least there're lights…" Reid shivered. "We could have ended up somewhere dark, cold and dilapidated."

Emily smirked around her mouthful of soup. "No we just got snowed in by a blizzard, and help probably isn't coming for a while because of the snow."

Reid moved his bad arm again, his face scrunching up in pain again. "Emily," He asked. "I think you need to make a sling for my arm. I would've said something before, but I wasn't thinking clearly. A sling will keep the wound from hurting and keep it from getting more damaged."

"What should we use?" She asked after a swallow of more soup.

"Did you find any more sheets?"

"Yeah… As I said, he's got at least five of everything in the house and it's all organized with military-like precision. I really wonder what he was up to."

"We can rip a sheet for the sling." Reid went on.

"Sure, as soon as you finish your soup." She agreed, putting down her soupspoon for a drink of water.

"If you promise to take some of that Tylenol," he said, and then winced as tears came into his eyes.

"I'll bet somewhere he has something stronger for the pain Reid." She said.

"No… I don't want anything stronger."

"Okay."

She took the dishes and the tray to the sink and went back to the only bedroom. In the closet, she found an entire stack of white sheets. She some back to Reid with a pair of kitchen shears from the kitchen. She cut the sheet up in to several pieces and Reid told her how to fold it for a sling. She got it tied around his neck without hurting him and his arm was now immobile against his chest.

"That feel better?" She wondered.

"Yeah… It's better." He agreed. "Now take your medicine and go lay down. We should get some sleep."

"I'm staying in the chair." Emily argued with him. "I took the blanket and sheets from the bed and I'm too tired and in too much pain to make it up again."

"Emily…"

"The chair is fine." She insisted. "It's comfortable and I can keep an eye on the fire."

Hogg had chopped and piled up a mound of perfectly stacked wood to the left side of the fireplace on a long rectangular shaped blue tarp.

"Well he wasn't into décor." Emily looked around at the clashing furniture. "It's all about function and neatness."

Reid yawned hugely. "Okay… you get some sleep." She ordered.

"Yes ma'am…"

Emily stayed in her chair with her parka pulled over her legs, too tired to go hunt up a blanket. She watched Reid until his breathing evened out and deepened, and then got wearily to her feet and went to the bathroom. After taking care of the call of nature, she inspected the bruises on her right side. She finally took a couple of Tylenol because the pain would hamper her taking care of Reid. She'd had worse pain after the beating she took in Colorado, but Reid didn't need to know that.

"He does know…" She whispered to her reflection in the mirror. "He's not a clueless as you want to think."

She leaned on her hands and stared down at the sink. How had they ended up in this situation? She should have seen something in Hogg before he shot at Reid. An unreasonable anger at Hotch rose up in her chest. Why did he send her in here with Reid? He should have known that Hogg was dangerous.

_Oh, so a dangerous situation means that Reid has to stay home. How is that fair? He's a great agent. _

The voice of reason in her head was right.

_I don't want him to get hurt again. What's wrong with that? He's been through so much already. _

She let her body sag against the white counter top. It wasn't Hotch's fault. It wasn't Reid's fault or her fault. Hogg hadn't been the prime suspect. There was a lot they hadn't known about him so they couldn't have known what they walked into.

"What good is it being a profiler if you can't keep yourself or a good friend from getting shot?"

She looked back up at her reflection in the mirror, drew in a deep breath, and watched her face contort at the pain it caused. "Come on Prentiss… Get it together. You're only allowed one breakdown per stranding."

She decided to go out to the closet she found with all the files. Maybe she could learn more about Walter Hogg, why they were snowed in with his body in the front yard, and why Reid had a bullet hole in his shoulder.

CMCMCMCM

Reid pulled a log off the stack next to the fireplace and let it fall on the smoldering embers. Sparks flew up from the new fuel added to the breaking coals. The fire flared up into life once more. He glanced over at Emily, who'd finally dropped off to sleep. While they both slept, the fire had burned down to mere glowing coals. He turned back to the easy chair where Emily slept curled up like a cat.

_Why wouldn't she go lie down on the bed?_

She shivered in her sleep. The room was colder he thought. They'd let the fire die too much. He looked around but he couldn't see her parka anywhere in the shadowed room. He left the living room and went down the hall past the bathroom. It took him a few minutes but he found another blanket in the bedroom closet.

He was in the middle of trying to put it around Emily when she jerked awake. "What are you doing?"

"I woke up… The fire was dying and you were shivering so I put wood on the fire and found a blanket for you."

"You're supposed to be resting." She scolded.

"How're your ribs?"

"I'm fine… I took a couple of pills a couple of hours ago. It still hurts, but not like it did. Don't change the subject."

"I'm fine Emily. I think the pain meds are wearing off, but I'm fine.

"The bottle said to take two every six hours. We have a problem though."

"What's wrong?" Reid asked.

"There're only six pills left in the bottle. Unless we can find more, you're going to be hurting bad."

"What about you?" Reid reminded her.

She shifted in the chair. "It doesn't hurt so much when I'm thinking about something else, like your gunshot wound."

"Emily…"

"Why don't we talk and then neither of us will be thinking about the pain."

He smiled his beautiful smile that she so seldom got to see in their job and it warmed her more than the heat from the orange and yellow flames of the fire.

"Okay…" He agreed. "What do you want to talk about?"


	4. Conversation in Front of the Fire

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**_A/n hey all, here's the next chapter. Thank you all again for your kind reviews and comments. _**

**_Conversation in Front of the Fire _**

"What do you want to talk about?" Reid asked.

"Tell me about the real Spencer Reid." She requested.

He ducked his head to look at the plain brown blanket wrapped around his shoulders. "You know everything there is to know about me. I'm an open book." He laughed.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I think you're hiding something Reid. Tell me what your secret is."

"I don't have a thrilling secret life." Reid said and his eyes met hers with the simple honesty she had always taken for granted with him. "You know I was born in Las Vegas and that my father left me and my mother when I was ten." His voice broke a little and his eyes began to shine. "My mother loved me, but I was the caretaker, not her." He swiped his hand at his eyes. "I put her away when I was eighteen. She hated me for it for a long time. I hated myself for a long time."

She left her chair and perched on the couch next to him. "I didn't mean to upset you."

He smiled a little at her as she squeezed his hand. "I'm fine…"

She decided not to argue because it wouldn't do any good. "Why did you decide to join the BAU?"

"I've always wanted to help people." He shifted a little and sighed. "Morgan told me once that what happened with my parents and Riley Jenkins made me choose what I do. I know that's part of it, but it's also that I've always wanted to know why the aberrant mind does the things that it does."

Emily found her head nodding along with Reid assessment of his reasons for joining the bureau.

He smiled at her again. "See… I'm pretty boring."

Emily laughed and winced at the pain in her side, which stabbed at her every time she moved.

"You're in pain." Reid pointed out, his puppy eyes filling with concern and guilt.

"I just can't get comfortable. I'll be all right. Let's talk more about you." She pushed the spotlight back to him.

"I don't know what else to say."

"Tell me more about your mother." She encouraged.

As she hoped, he lit up like the sun. "She's doing really well right now. It gets more difficult as she gets older to balance her medications because of the side effects. She's been taking anti-psychotics for the last thirty-five years and its had an effect on her body."

"You looked happy when you came back from seeing her after Thanksgiving." Emily said.

He turned to look at the red and orange flames dancing in the fireplace. They popped and they both jumped. Emily groaned again as more pain radiated through her right side.

"She had a good day." Reid said. "It was the first holiday we've had in a while that she enjoyed. Normally my mom isn't a big fan of the holidays. She always said that Christmas was too commercialized."

Emily let go of his hand to stroke his blanket-covered arm. "What's wrong?"

"It's my fault that my parents don't enjoy the holidays. I went to my dad when I was four and told him I knew Santa wasn't real. They had a huge fight over it. It all happened around the Riley Jenkins case. I think all the tension there just made every argument worse. I didn't know why they were so upset with each other, but I knew it was something I did."

"Hey…" She rubbed his arm. "You didn't do anything wrong. You were a child, Reid. You were blessed with a brain that most people envy for all the wrong reasons. How does a little kid deal with all of that? I think the fact that you survived and grew up to be so kind and compassionate is a bit of a miracle."

She watched his cheeks go pink in the wavering light of the fireplace. He wouldn't look at her so she got slowly to her feet trying not to groan with the pain that just wouldn't stop. The meds she took hadn't touched it and every breath hurt.

"Emily?"

"I just need a bathroom break. I'll be back in a minute."

"Do you need some help?"

She smirked at him. "No thank you Dr. Reid."

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Just the act of answering the call of nature was agonizing pain. She'd tried to search through more of the bathroom for extra painkillers, which she didn't find. There they were in the home of some kind of crazy survivalist and he had everything but basic headache medication.

"I couldn't find any more pain medication. It's odd that this guy profiles like some kind of hermit survivalist, but he doesn't have more than one bottle of Tylenol."

"Maybe he didn't have the time to stock up." Reid said quietly.

"Where were we?" Emily asked.

"We were going to talk about you." Reid said as he watched the fire pop.

"No… I think we were still talking about you." Emily perched next to him again.

"I don't have anything else to say… No deep dark secrets."

"You said that already." She reminded him.

"Come on Emily. Just tell me all the stuff you don't want anyone to know. You can trust me."

She studied his innocent eyes for a minute. "I think you trick people with your eyes."

He pinked up again. "I'm not tricking you." He protested. "I really want to know more about you."

She shifted again trying to get comfortable against the pain in her ribs. "Okay, but you'll be sorry."

"I highly doubt that," he argued.

"I was born in Washington DC, and spent most of my childhood traveling around with my parents. They're both Ambassadors and they had different assignments at different times. I look back on it now, and I realize that I was lucky to get to see as much of the world as I did. When I wasn't complaining about all the moves, I did enjoy some of the places we lived. I just didn't tell my mom and dad." She smirked at him and he smiled back. The only place I really hated was Saudi Arabia."

"Why?" Reid asked curiously.

"I was a teenager when my father was assigned there to the diplomatic corps. I despised the way they treated women. I couldn't dress the way I wanted to. It literally was life threatening for me. It was the longest year of my life. I was so happy when we were sent to Italy next, even though it meant starting over again. Then I got pregnant, and I was so freaked out, that I got an abortion and didn't tell my mother for months. I was eighteen and out of school when they finally settled back in DC."

"But you got to learn so much of the world and you speak four different languages." Reid said.

"Yeah, but all I wanted to do was have a normal life and be a kid."

"I do understand." Reid said, turning back to the fire.

Guilt overwhelmed the pain in her side for a minute. "I shouldn't complain because you had it worse than I did. I had parents that were mostly indifferent, but they were always there."

"I don't know which is worse." Reid said glancing back at Emily as the fire popped again. "I had my mother there every day, but she was in her own world. Your parents were there but they were more involved in their work."

"Why don't we leave the subject behind and talk about something else." Emily suggested.

Reid smiled widely. "What's your favorite color?"

"Blue… What's yours?" She asked

"Purple."

Emily laughed, and then coughed at the pain caused by her enjoyment. "Why purple?"

"I didn't ask you why you like blue." Reid retorted, pulling his legs up to his chest.

"Sorry… I didn't know it was a taboo subject."

"I don't know why I like it." He said. "I just do."

"Well okay," Emily said. "I know you've read a lot of books. Which is your most favorite?"

"I like lots of books. I can't name just one book." He said, but he wouldn't look at her.

"Come on," she nudged his good arm. "I promise it's like Vegas here."

Reid snorted laughter. "Having lived there for most of my life I can tell you that just because you do something stupid there doesn't mean it stays there. Twelve percent of the murders committed in Las Vegas are jilted spouses coming after their trysting husband or wife."

She laughed, and then groaned as tears formed in her eyes. "Damn it!" She shouted, and then cried out in pain again as more washed through her ribs like some kind of medieval torture. "I can't even laugh."

"I wasn't trying to be funny."

"That's when you are funny." She said. "Are you going to answer my question?"

He pulled the blanket tighter around his shoulders with his good hand. "Alright, but you can't tell Morgan."

She crossed her heart like a schoolgirl. "I promise Dr Reid never to reveal what I receive in confidence here."

"My favorite story is The Gift of the Magi. My mother used to read it to me when she was having a good day. She read many different things to me, like 15th century literature, but I used to beg her for that story.

"I don't think that's funny Reid." Emily said. "I think it's sweet."

"What about you." Reid switched focus again. "What's your favorite book?"

"To Kill a Mockingbird," She answered without missing a beat.

"Why?" Reid asked stretching out his legs to the fire.

"Because Atticus Finch stood up for what he believed in. He taught his children and the community by example. He showed perfect integrity. He was persecuted for treating a black man in the Depression as an equal instead of a second-class citizen. He didn't give up even when he lost. I always liked Boo's character too."

Reid nodded. "I like that book too." He looked at his watch. "It's after three. Why don't we each take a couple more Tylenol and get to sleep. You…" He pointed through the door. "Go lay down on the bed." He ordered.

"Yes sir…" She saluted him with the hand not connected to her aching ribs. "I do feel a bit like I've been hit by a truck."

"Me too," he admitted.

"I'll get you a drink of water." She said.

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Her eyes felt like someone had blown sand into them when she finally lay down on the bed. The wind howled at the window to her left. She hadn't noticed the way it sounded like a sobbing woman when she'd been talking to Reid. She shivered and wished that she'd stayed out in the living room with him.

She closed her eyes and all she could hear were the gunshots and see Reid falling back from the force of the bullet. If Reid hadn't found the strength to get, up and fire his gun… She shivered again. She was sure that time it wouldn't have ended as well for her, as it had in Colorado and that was one of the most horrible experiences of her life.

She pulled the blanket around her and shivered again. She couldn't make her eyes close and sleep. The darkness in the house suddenly seemed to press down like a huge weight on her chest. She'd never been afraid of the dark, but she couldn't sleep in the same bed as Hogg.

Reid slept deeply when she gave up and came back out into the living room. She used her good arm to put more wood on the fire, and then she went back to her chair. Strange… She couldn't hear the sobbing wind anymore.


	5. The End of the Storm

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n hey all... Here's the next chapter. Thank you all again for your kind reviews and support. _**

**_The End of the Storm _**

When Reid opened his eyes the next morning, the fire was out. He sat up, groaning at the pain in his shoulder. Sunlight streamed in from the big window to the right of the sofa. He noticed for the first time, the lack of a television or any books. It was as though no one really lived in the room.

Despite the fire going out, he didn't feel as cold as he had after Hogg shot him. He stood up with his blanket wrapped around his torso and went to the wall. To his surprise, he noticed a temperature control for the furnace. How did he miss that last night?

_Oh, I don't know maybe that you were distracted by the gaping hole in your shoulder! _

The temperature control was off and the thermometer sat at fifty degrees. He switched it on and pushed the digital readout up to seventy-two degrees. The furnace whooshed on and he jumped in surprise. Pain stabbed into his arm, but he ignored it to go over to Emily.

She'd finally gone to sleep and he hated to wake her, but he could see that the storm was over and they needed to find a way to get out of this house.

"Emily…" He whispered and touched her shoulder.

"What?" She jerked awake and moaned. "Oh God, I think I stiffened up."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's okay. Are you okay? Did you need something? Is your arm okay?" She babbled through clenched teeth.

He pushed her back in the chair. "I'm fine. It's morning and I thought that maybe we should see if we can get out of here."

"Okay…" She wiped at her eyes with her right hand. "Just let me wake up for a minute."

"I can make some coffee." Reid said excitedly.

"Oh no… I'm the one with two good hands. I'll see about some coffee." She argued.

"But your ribs-"

"Don't argue with me Dr. Reid. Go sit down over there." She ordered him back to his chair.

"No… I'm tired of sitting. I'm going to explore the rest of the house."

"Reid…"

"I'll be alright." He left the living room without letting her say anything.

He went down the hallway to the bedroom Emily had found. His stocking feet whispered over the hardwood floors. Hogg hadn't seemed interested in décor in any room. The white bedroom walls were devoid of photographs or art.

Reid went back to the closet in the hallway that Emily said had lots of files. He pulled out the first file he came to and opened it. He nearly dropped it in shock. He'd seen many crazy things in his job, but the photos in the files were some of the worst and the oddest he'd ever seen. He put it back and found another file with a large sheaf of paper that he read through in two minutes.

"Reid?"

He jumped again. His shoulder burned with pain, but Emily's commanding voice had him turning on his heel for the kitchen. "Look what I found." He waved the file folder in her direction. "This is Hogg's Manifesto. Rossi was right. He was our bomber. He was planning to place a bomb in the Utah State Capital building on Christmas Eve."

"I'm glad he's dead." Emily said dismissing the sheaf of paper in Reid's hands. "Here's your coffee. I found some oatmeal too if you want it."

Reid made a face and she laughed. "I hate oatmeal. It tastes like cardboard."

"Good, more for me. There's some cold cereal in the pantry over there. Reid?"

"Yeah…" He opened the pantry door. "Thanks for finding the heat. I can't believe I missed it last night."

"You were kind of focused on this." Reid popped out of the pantry and pointed to his shoulder. "Hogg seemed to like the fire or the heat would have been on when we first came in the house."

"We need to go outside and see if we can get the truck out of here."

Reid poured milk he found in the fridge into his bowl of cereal. "I'll go check."

Emily laughed. "You can't go outside with just that blanket. It's got to be around twenty degrees out there. Your shirt, vest and tie are ruined and so is your coat."

"Well what are we going to do?"

"Maybe we can find clothes." Emily suggested.

"I don't want to wear his clothes," Reid argued going white. "I killed him Emily."

"I know you did, but you need to change into something warm if we're going to get out of here. I don't want to just sit here and see if maybe the rest of the team shows up."

"Why is that a bad thing?" Reid asked as Emily took a spoonful of her hot oatmeal.

She chewed very slowly and swallowed, "Because we don't need the cavalry riding up to rescue us. I can drive and it's only twenty miles back to Cedar City. If the truck isn't stuck, we can get out of here."

He nodded because she was right. He didn't want to be rescued for once. "You're right." He agreed. "I have to find something other than this blanket."

"Then we're getting out of here and getting you to the hospital."

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Emily found Reid on the couch with more of Hogg's files on his lap. She watched him read, his fingers sliding down the page like silk on skin. If she could only figure out how he did that. If only she could concentrate so intensely. She smiled, thinking of all the work she could accomplish so much faster if she had that ability.

"Hey Reid!"

He jumped and she laughed. Then she groaned pressing her hand into her aching ribs. "That's what you get for laughing at me." He snorted out.

"Very funny Reid, it happens to hurt like you wouldn't believe." She put a hard edge into her voice.

He went pink. "Sorry Emily… I was just -"

She put her hand on his good shoulder. "I'm just kidding."

"Oh right… Um, do you need something?"

She held up a thick, green and grey flannel work shirt. "I found something for you to wear."

"I can't wear that." He squeaked pushing away from her. "It's too big. He was huge."

"I know that Reid. I don't know what else to do. It's freezing out there. You'll have to make it work."

He took the shirt from her and tried to put it on one handed. "Here… Let me help you." Emily said.

She got him into the shirt, even though every small move was still agony for her. As much as she hated hospitals, she longed for a doctor and pain medication.

"You need to take the last dose of Tylenol." Reid said as she buttoned the shirt over his sling.

Once again, his ability to know exactly what she was thinking and feeling jolted her.

"I'm not taking it. You're going to take it." She argued.

"I can see how much pain you're in. You have to drive us out of here."

"I'm not going to argue with you about this." Emily said stepping back to look at him after rolling up the long sleeves.

The shirt reached his knees and fluttered around him like the sail on a boat. She didn't laugh only because of how much it would hurt.

"I look ridiculous." He complained. "I can see it in your eyes.

He looked down at the shirt hitting his knees and sighed loudly. "Can we just get out of here?"

"Take the Tylenol." She started.

"No… I'm going outside. Please help me with my boots."

She glared at him but he didn't seem to notice as he sat on the edge of the couch. As soon as she finished with his boots, he stood and left the room. "You need a coat." She called.

"I'm fine… If you put a coat over this," he complained, "I'll drown."

"You're cute when you're sarcastic." Emily smirked.

"I'll be right back."

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He took much longer than Emily thought. She had gathered up his bloody clothes, smoothed out her hair with her hands as best she could and put on her own coat and boots. Now she paced the room, her pain nearly forgotten as she wondered what Reid was doing. She should go out there and look for him. Perhaps he's slipped on ice and fallen.

_Stop it and trust him. He's not completely helpless!_

She decided to listen to that voice instead of ignoring it. He would come back very soon because he knew she wanted to leave.

She went to the window and looked out toward the truck. The sunlight sparkled off the snow as if diamonds had fallen on top of the snow. It piled up on Hogg's truck covering the roof, the windows and the hood. Their SUV had the same snow covering it. She tried to keep her eyes away from the spot where Hogg had fallen, but her eyes wouldn't obey her desire not to look. There was a slight mound there. The wind had drifted the snow, so she couldn't be sure how much had fallen. She could see one of his boots sticking out of the snow and her stomach roiled. If Reid hadn't killed him… She shut that thought out of her head fast, locking it away in her head to think about at a better time. She looked around the rest of the yard but couldn't see Reid. _Where had he gone for so long?_

He said he was going out to see if they could move the truck, but it didn't look like he walked that way. She couldn't see any footprints in the snow going in that direction. She angled her head around to the left of the house in the direction Hogg had dragged her before Reid shot him. Her mind refused to let her stop thinking about those minutes in the storm.

She could still hear the echo of the shots in her ears. She shivered and groaned at the pain the shiver elicited in her ribs. If Reid hadn't shot him… What would be happening to her now? Would she be tied up, or locked up somewhere, or even dead? She shook her head as though to clear water from her ears after swimming. It didn't do any good to speculate on what could have happened.

A few minutes later, she rounded the corner to the living room after one last painful visit to the bathroom and taking her medicine. Even though she wanted to save it for Reid, he'd never take it no matter how much pain he felt.

She waited another five minutes and was about to put on her coat to go look for him when Reid opened the door with his good arm. He greeted her with a huge smile on his face. "You're never going to believe what I found." He squeaked excitedly.


	6. The Barn

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_**A/n hey all here's the next chapter. Only one left after this. Thanks again for all your kind comments. **_

_**The Barn **_

"You scare me when you squeak and have that excited glow in your eyes." Emily stated.

"Come on," he waved her to him. "Come outside and see what I found in the big barn out back."

"Wait…" She called from her place at the window. "I want to check your dressing and see if it needs to be changed."

"Actually, nowadays doctors don't change dressing everyday as they used to. The more you open the wound, the greater the chance for infection."

"Just humor me Reid," She rolled her eyes. "I just want to be sure it's not oozing blood. I want to check and make sure it's not infected.

He went reluctantly to the couch while she retrieved more gauze and tape. He flinched a bit after she unbuttoned the huge shirt, removed the makeshift sling, and pulled it down over his shoulder.

"Does it hurt?"

"It's not bad. It feels better immobile." He said truthfully. "After my leg, this is a piece of cake."

"I'll be as quick as I can."

She carefully removed the gauze and tape from the wound. A good portion of the dressing was bloody and the wound oozed a bit, but the area didn't look red or inflamed.

"It looks good, just oozing a little." She replaced the front bandage and then repeated the process with the back of his shoulder with new dressings.

"There, they both look fine, no infection."

"Can we go now?" He pleaded. "You need to see a doctor and so do I."

"Alright… just let me get your shirt buttoned.

She pulled her coat tightly around her and made sure her boots were tightly tied up. She followed Reid out into the cold and snow. The truth was that she was intensely curious as to what her friend had found. You never could be sure with Reid. It could be anything from Hogg's bomb making equipment to a written explanation of the meaning of life.

The snow crunched under their feet. It appeared to be dry and powdery instead of wet and heavy which made her their chances of getting out of there better. She shivered a bit in the wind that had picked up a little. Her breath was visible in the air, but it tasted clean and pure. The sun shining through the trees around the house felt good on her face. She pulled her sunglasses out of her coat pocket and put them on as the brightness of the sun was making her squint.

The barn wasn't too far behind the house and it was huge with an a-frame roof and two levels. It had once been white, but, like the house, had faded to an ugly grayish color. She hoped that what Reid had found wasn't a cow needing to be milked or chickens to be fed.

The huge doors stood open. The inside was dark in contrast to the light from the sun behind the structure so that she couldn't see what Reid was so excited about until they stepped inside.

"See… This should get us back into town." He said eagerly.

A huge pickup truck with a plow mounted on the front and chains on the tires waited for them. "This is great Reid," She said a little breathless from the walk and her ribs. "We don't have keys though."

"Sure we do," He pulled a key from the pocket on the front of his shirt. "The cab wasn't locked and this was under the mat."

She felt her face stretch in a broad grin. "You're a genius." She threw her arms around him forgetting her ribs until they reminded her with stabbing pain. She nearly screamed with the pain that the Tylenol just wasn't touching.

"Emily." He gently pushed her back. "We need to get out of here. You need to have your ribs checked."

"I'm not arguing with you." She said breathlessly.

He helped her climb up into the truck. It started right up on the first try as Reid levered himself up into the passenger seat. She found the heat and turned it on full blast. "I don't have any idea how to work the plow." She said.

"Don't worry about it until we need it. It's got four wheel drive, and that with the chains might be enough."

He turned on the radio and moved the dial until he found the news. The weatherman informed them that the storm, which had dumped eight inches of snow across the Wasatch Front and all the way down into St. George, was over with all major roads cleared of the snow.

"Okay… Let's get going and see how we do." Emily depressed the clutch, dropped the truck into first gear, and gently hit the gas.

"Wait just a minute."

She lifted her foot off the gas and looked at him. "What Reid?"

"Here're the controls for the plow." He hit the button and the blade lowered and stopped as it touched the ground.

She just looked at him. "I studied the controls while we listened to the weather report."

"Here we go," Emily let the truck drift along until the wheels hit the snow.

She gave it more gas as the blade easily moved the snow in front of them leaving a long swath of clear ground. She didn't talk to Reid who stayed very quiet in his seat as they moved around the house and past their stranded SUV. She stopped the truck.

"Emily?"

"We left your clothes in the house."

"We have to call in the locals, the team and crime scene techs. They'll get them. They're evidence anyway and honestly they're ruined anyway."

"Alright, let's get going." She agreed.

The truck's wheels spun a bit, but soon found traction on the dry snow. The plow pushed the snow away from them all the way back down the rutted dirt road. The truck seemed as sturdy as a tank because she barely felt the bumps in the road.

She let out the breath she didn't realize she'd been holding when they finally reached the main road. It was clear as the radio promised. Reid worked the controls that raised the plow up off the ground. She sat there for a minute as a car passed them going the opposite direction. "See if you can get Hotch on the phone now." She said to Reid as she made a left hand turn back to Cedar City.

He pulled his phone of his pocket and awkwardly flipped it open with one hand. "Still no bars."

"How can that be when we're only twenty miles from the nearest city?"

"Did you know that Cedar City gets an average of 45.5 inches of snow every year?" Reid said.

"That's great… We just experienced eight of those inches. I think I'll pass on the rest of the year." She said sarcastically.

"I'm just glad we're getting you to a hospital."

She glanced over to see real worry in his puppy eyes. "So why don't you distract me." She said.

"How do I do that?" He asked perplexed.

"Tell me what you're going to do for Christmas. It's only three days away you know."

His eyes lit up. "Well, JJ invited me and Garcia over for dinner. I usually go to the homeless shelter in the early afternoon to help with their dinner." He said. "I told JJ that I might not be able to make dinner because of working at the shelter. She and Will decided that it would be a good experience for Henry to understand the true meaning of Christmas. Garcia is coming too."

"Are you sure you're going to be able to volunteer with your arm in that sling?"

"Oh I'm sure they can find something I can do."

Emily glanced over at him but he was looking out the window at the trees as they rushed past. "Perhaps you could use an extra pair of hands."

Reid looked back at her. "Um, yeah… I guess you could help. I mean if it wouldn't hurt your ribs too much. I mean I'd like that, or um, Garcia would like it." He spluttered.

"Okay then… Why don't I pick you up and then I can drop you off at JJ and Will's house afterwards."

Reid smiled widely. "Are you sure you didn't have something else to do?"

She laughed. "No… My parents are going skiing in France. I was planning to spend the day alone. I'd much rather get out and do something for someone else."

"I'm glad," he said and blushed. "I'm going to try the phone again."

He opened the phone and grinned. "There're a couple of bars. I'm going to try to call Hotch."

She felt herself relax for the first time in nearly twenty-four hours. They were fifteen miles from a doctor and their family.

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Reid sat up in the hospital bed with a new dressing and sling on his arm. The doctor had insisted that he and Emily stay for at least twenty-four hours before making the trip back to DC. His doctor said that the bullet hadn't hit any major blood vessels or any bones. He'd have to wear the sling for ten days, and maybe have some physical therapy, but he would have full use of the arm in a few weeks.

Emily was in another room down the hall. She was stuck there for the same twenty-four hour period because she had a hairline fracture of two ribs. All they could do was give her pain medication and tell her to take it easy for the next few days. Overall, it could have been worse.

"Hey my man," Morgan sauntered into the room with Hotch and Rossi behind him. "We just came from seeing Emily."

"How is she?" Reid asked anxiously.

"She's doing fine." Hotch said. "She's sleeping. The pain medication put her right out."

"Good…"

"So what happened?" Rossi asked.

Reid explained everything to them from Hogg shooting him to the snowstorm trapping them and all they found in Hogg's home that convinced them that he was the bomber they'd looked for.

"I agree." Hotch said. "From what we've already found today… Mr. Walter Hogg was a dangerous man. If you hadn't stopped him, more people would've died."

"Yeah… I'm impressed that you could shot that precisely with your left hand." Rossi said. "The coroner said the bullet got him right in the middle of his forehead.

"I couldn't let him hurt Emily." Reid blushed as he played with the edge of his blanket.

"Remind me never to piss you off," Rossi said as he clapped Reid on his good shoulder.

"I didn't enjoy it." Reid said quietly.

"We know that kid…"

"You did what you had to do." Hotch said. "Never feel bad about that."

"Yeah, you saved Emily's life, not to mention your own life." Rossi said. "We're proud of you."

"You did good my man." Morgan clapped his good shoulder. "We brought in the other losers, Hotch, Rossi and I went to interview. We found them together in another home like what you described. They had bomb-making materials in the cellar. They were supposed to meet up with Hogg at his place. We got there just as they were leaving."

Reid shivered at the thought of what could have happened had the rest of the team not stopped Hogg's accomplices from going out to meet him. They could've ended up trapped with two very dangerous men, who would've been very pissed off at the shooting of their friend.

"I'm just glad we stopped them before they hurt anyone." Rossi said gravelly, as Reid just looked up at him.

"Me too…" He said sincerely.

"Is there anything we can get for you kid?" Morgan asked.

"Yeah… Do you think they have any cherry Jell-O?" Reid asked.


	7. The Best Christmas Ever

**_Disclaimer: see my profile_**

**_A/n here's the last chapter everyone. Thank you all once again for your kind reviews. Happy Holidays._**

**_The Best Christmas Ever_**

Reid was attempting to get into his brown corduroy jacket and purple scarf when his door buzzer sounded. He started in surprise even though he'd been expecting it to ring for half an hour. "Who's there?" He asked automatically through the security panel.

"Who do you think?" Emily responded. "Maybe you were expecting Santa himself."

"No! I mean… I'm buzzing you in."

A few minutes later, he let Emily into his living area. She wore a bright red, knitted sweater with white snowflakes worked into the pattern, a pair of black jeans with black boots and coat. The wind and cold had teased a pink hue on her cheeks and her eyes sparkled.

"Are you ready?" She asked looking him up and down.

"Yes." His jacket still hung off one shoulder as he still wore a sling on his right arm.

"I can see that." Emily smirked. "Let me help you with that."

She pulled the jacket up over his wounded shoulder and adjusted his scarf. "There… You're all ready to go."

"Thanks Emily…"

"You're welcome. Let's get going." She took his free arm and led him out the door.

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They reached the homeless shelter twenty minutes later. The building was dirty on the outside and painted ugly putty brown. It sat on the northwest corner of the street in one of the poorer neighborhoods of DC. The main door, facing north, opened onto a large room set up with long table and metal folding chairs.

The room, as neat and as clean as could be expected, was nearly full of people looking for a hot meal on this most festive time of the year. Long memorized words from the bible entered his head as they did every year when he came to help at this place.

"_In as much as ye have done it unto one of the least of these, ye have done it unto me." _

Two small children ran past them, laughing, to another group of kids near the windows. The joyous tone in their voices elevated his mood.

He led Emily to the back of the room where a serving area was set up, and past a huge tree. Someone had decorated it with handmade ornaments and tinsel. Red, green and white gold lights twinkled in the branches despite the fact that dark was hours away.

"There you are Spencer Reid." A voice like a door that badly needed oil said from their left.

"Liza…" He greeted her, happy to see the tiny little woman that helped to run the shelter with the precision of an army officer and the compassion of a saint.

Her long brown hair resided in a messy ponytail. Her dark green sweater hung off her skinny frame, and her hands were red from washing dishes. He thought she was one of the most beautiful women in the world.

"Where's Charlie?" He asked after her husband.

"He broke his leg two days ago."

"Oh no… How did that happen?"

She led him back into the kitchen filled with volunteers and the delicious smell of dinner. "We got a last minute donation of turkeys and he was helping bring them in when he fell on the ice."

"Tell him I said hello." Reid asked. "I know what it's like to be short a working leg."

"I know you do." Liza said squeezing his arm.

Emily coughed into her hand as Reid began unbuttoning his coat. "Oh right, sorry Emily, Liza, this is Emily Prentiss. We work together." He explained.

"It's nice to meet you my dear." Liza shook her hand.

"When Reid said he came here every year to help I invited myself along this year." Emily told her as she shed her coat, moving very stiffly.

"Are you in pain?" Reid asked anxiously.

"I'm okay… I took one of the pills the doctor gave me. I'm fine." She assured him.

"What happened to you two?" Liza asked.

"It happened on a case." Reid said.

Liza nodded her head and pulled Reid further into the kitchen by his good arm. "Say no more. I think we'll put both of you to work serving. You don't need two hands for that."

She turned back to Emily. "Would you like to help with the serving?"

"I've got injured ribs, but I think serving is a great idea." Emily smiled.

Liza was about to send them out to the big serving table when Garcia entered with JJ and Will. "Hey there angel fish," she greeted Emily.

Garcia would've surprised Reid with her outfit had he not been used to her colorful personality. She wore a red sweater like Emily but with a huge calendar of December worked into the knitted pattern on the front. The 25th of December was outlined with a green wreath tied with a red bow. She wore a pair of dark blue jeans and a pair of black flat-heeled boots. She'd placed a Santa hat on top of her copper curls and wore scarlet framed glasses that matched her lipstick.

He watched her hug Emily carefully and beam at her friend. Happiness at her always-cheerful attitude warmed his heart and blood, so that it felt more like a day in June, than a cold winter's day.

"Hey Spence…" JJ hugged him very carefully. She smelled like vanilla and cinnamon.

"Hi JJ," he pulled back and gave Will a small wave. "Hey Will."

"How's it going Spence?" Will drawled.

"I'm good. How are you guys?"

"We're good. Thanks for suggesting this for Christmas." He smiled

"Yeah Spence, it was a great idea."

Reid looked around for his Godson, whom he most wanted to see that day. "Where's Henry?"

"He's with the kids. There's a young lady name Amy that's got some little games organized."

"Oh yeah," Reid smiled. "She's Liza's daughter in law."

JJ looked around to the woman speaking to Garcia and Emily. "That's Liza. She practically runs this place single handedly."

"Spencer exaggerates." Liza interrupted. "If it wasn't for all the people that volunteer their time here, I'd be drowning in work."

There were five other adults in the kitchen working hard over stoves, ovens and sinks. Liza quickly introduced Reid to Sam, Keisha, Jade, Carver and Gupta.

"The food's ready…" Liza said as she checked the ovens and stoves. "Let's get serving people."

"You heard the lady." Garcia joked. "Come on Reid," She put a hand on his good arm. "Let's go feed the masses."

He ended up next to Emily in front of a large stainless steel pan of mashed potatoes. Aromas of roasted turkey, vegetables and pie filled the room as hungry people lined up for food. Emily smirked at him from her station in front of the corn. He smiled back, still thankful that they'd survived their encounter with Hogg.

Liza called for their attention just before Will began carving the first turkey. "Jessica asked if she could say the blessing this year."

The small, blond haired girl Reid had seen playing with Henry and two other children faced the crowd. He easily found her mother near Liza with her arm in a cast and a bruise under her right eye.

Jessica folded her arms and started to speak in a sweet little voice. "Dear Jesus… Happy Birthday. Thank you for our food. Please bless mommy and Brownie. Thank you for the snow and a place to sleep Amen."

No one laughed at the simple little prayer. Reid looked over to see the both JJ and Garcia had tears on their cheeks. Emily smiled at him with sparkling eyes. Everyone was silent for a minute and then the talking and laughing began. He supposed that for most of these people, a dinner on Christmas was the closest they came to family. Gratitude for his team, his mother and for his shaky, but renewed relationship with his father swept his heart. He had so much, while these people had nothing but the kindness of strangers.

The dinner went by very fast as it did every year. He forgot about the soreness in his shoulder as people with much bigger problems passed by his station. The best were the children. All of them were so polite and smiling as they held out their freshly washed hands, clutching plain, but sturdy white paper plates. He wondered, as he did every year, if this meal was the only good one they'd get for the holidays.

"How ya doing over there?" Emily asked as the line shortened.

"I'm good. Are you okay?"

"I'm a little tired, but I'm alright."

The last person passed their stations fifteen minutes later. He tried to get Emily to sit down, but she wanted to help clean up. Liza wouldn't let him help. She sent him off to Will and JJ who were with Henry. The little boy toddled over to Reid as soon as he sat down and climbed into his lap.

"He's missed you." JJ told him.

He clamped down on the urge to argue that Henry probably didn't have the emotional attachment to miss him as he would his parents. He knew JJ wouldn't like him to say that. "I missed him too." He said honestly, taking the offered toy car Henry held out to him. "Thanks Henry."

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Emily sat next to them half an hour later as Shane, Liza's son, gathered them around to read a story. He'd chosen Reid's favorite story "The Gift of the Magi," by O. Henry. The beautiful story of love and sacrifice touched all of them in the room.

She reached over and took Reid's free hand. He stared at her in surprise for a moment, but then smiled around very pink cheeks. No one seemed to notice, but even if they had, it didn't matter, so she held on through the recitation of the lovely little story.

_The magi, as you know, were wise men-wonderfully wise men-who brought gifts to the Babe in the manger. They invented the art of giving Christmas presents. Being wise, their gifts were no doubt wise ones, possibly bearing the privilege of exchange in case of duplication. And here I have lamely related to you the uneventful chronicle of two foolish children in a flat who most unwisely sacrificed for each other the greatest treasures of their house. But in a last word to the wise of these days let it be said that of all who give gifts these two were the wisest. O all who give and receive gifts, such as they are wisest. Everywhere they are wisest. They are the magi. _

She felt Reid looking at her again as the last paragraph was read in the deep treble voice of Liza's son. Reid squeezed her hand tightly. She knew that the connection forged between them by shared pain of injury and taking care of each other would bind them together more than the terrors and blood of their job.

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Emily and Reid arrived last at JJ and Will's home. She stopped him when he turned for the door handle. "Reid… I just wanted to thank you again for letting me come with you guys today."

"I didn't let you do anything." He squeaked. "I wanted you to come with us."

"This is shaping up to be the best Christmas I've had in a long time." She leaned over, and kissed him on the cheek. "Let's go have dinner."

He nodded, his cheek tingling from her kiss. She was right about one thing. This was shaping up to be the best Christmas he'd had in a very long time.

**_THE END_**

**_A/n 2 The text quoted in the story if from "The Gift of the Magi." by O Henry. If you've never read it, I highly recommend it._**


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